i found the camera market overview 2012-2014 section to be interesting.

as compact camera systems decline, DSLRs are actually picking up a greater percentage of that transitioning market than MILCs.

MILCs are +3% from 2012 while DSLRs are +8%. though i wonder if that bump in percentages is simply a function of a loss of compact camera consumers...this seems more likely.

coupled with the 2012 MILC predictions, i think these statistics show that mirrorless isn't experiencing the ground swelling impact on the future of camera manufacturing that some like to believe it will.

the focus system in the 5d series was the number one improvement i was looking for since the release of the 5dC. before the 7d came out a very expensive 1 series camera was your only option for a really good focusing system. i could never afford the 1 series cameras...

i never invested in the 7d as i personally loathe a cropped form factor. of those professionals i knew who had them, they were luke warm over the camera. it was good in some respects...no so good in others. all of them dumped their 7ds in favor of the 5d3 when it came out.

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The camera and hardware is way down the list of requirements for a professional photo. The subject matter takes up the first 25 places

light is up there at the top for me. great light makes for great photographs. great subject in crappy light? probably not getting a portfolio piece out of that scenario. in truth those two probably go hand in hand...

One client we used to work for decided to eliminate photo coverage of their annual weekend alumni event in favor of asking the alumni themselves to shoot it and upload via Instagram with their phones. And these clients weren't rinky dink types...one was an Ivy League university and another was one of the highest reputed medical schools in the country.

These type of clients valued immediacy so much more over anything else they completely eliminated any budget for photography at all and didn't care one iota if it was shot on a cell phone or a high megapixel camera.

Doesn't this tell you something Authenticity is more important to some clients than perfection.

Lee Iacocca said “Lead, Follow, or Get Out of The Way,” This is true of all business, not just Detroit.

What it tells me is a client that no longer pays isn't a client anymore. Nothing else.

Everything is cyclacle. I have already started getting clients who are recognizing again that there is value in paying for professional photography. They got burned by going the cheap and easy route and they learned value added is value retained.

there are some unique circumstances that the photography market and digital faces right now. I think the unknown future and uncertainty about the direction we are heading causes some to grasp at straws. The disapation of the point and shoot market to me doesn't mean that dslrs must now take on the task of being all in one capable of everything in one package.

To me that is exactly the wrong direction to go in. 5d series and 1d series cameras should remain high end pieces of equipment that distinguish themselves by being the very best at doing one thing...taking quality photos. The battle for the mass market is all but lost to smart phones. I don't think camera makers will ever regain their position in that segment. But just because they lost that battle doesn't mean they should dilute their high end products so much so to please every possible segment that exists in the world of picture taking. To a serious photographer...that is truly something to fear.

In hindsight...the move camera companies should have made was to snatch up properties such as Instagram when they were in their infancy so that they could cement themselves in the mass market of consumer photography. But that's neither here nor there.

As a professional photographer, I don't worry about canon or nikons market share. I recognize that dslr makers rode a lucrative wave the past 10 years as digital developed and matured...now they will have to normalize their operations to a shrinking market. I have every confidence that both canon and Nikon will survive and continue to provide great equipment to working professionals.

i used to shoot alot of corporate and collegiate events. there was a great deal of pressure for immediacy. myself and many of my associates resisted as we preferred to work the raw files over before releasing them. many of those jobs in my area have disappeared

"... resisted as we preferred to work the raw files over before releasing them. many of those jobs in my area have disappeared" You've got to be kidding, you turned down work because you wanted perfection and your client wanted good enough

No. I didn't say that. You made a major inaccurate leap. What I said was we resisted delivering an entire events worth of work on the spot. Yes, as professionals it is our desire to deliver the highest quality of work we are capable of. We would often spend an extra hour or two after the event sorting and processing files to meet the immediate needs of clients.

Ultimately those clients decided they didn't want to pay anything for photography coverage....zero. So they brought in student volunteers to shoot stuff with their phones and upload via Instagram. One client we used to work for decided to eliminate photo coverage of their annual weekend alumni event in favor of asking the alumni themselves to shoot it and upload via Instagram with their phones. And these clients weren't rinky dink types...one was an Ivy League university and another was one of the highest reputed medical schools in the country.

These type of clients valued immediacy so much more over anything else they completely eliminated any budget for photography at all and didn't care one iota if it was shot on a cell phone or a high megapixel camera.

I also imagine that shooting with clients and letting them see in "real time" the first impressions of the shots on an ipad could be a great for some people.

i already do that with capture one, with any camera i want.

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Well... you obviously do not get it. And because you represent the needs of all photographers neither can anyone else in the world. Nor should they be intrigued to do so. And of course its impossible to imagine that greater interconnectivity would lead to any new uses of DSLR from the ones you currently have.

here's what i dont get. you immediately share a small jpg with the world via wifi out of camera, everybody says "great thats cool!"....and then what? you have the 50mp raw file that you then edit, prepare and output to then share with the world...again. you have basically stolen away a certain level of impact a final image would have by prematurely releasing a photo. once released...the need for the higher resolution raw file is somewhat dissipated. what i don't get is the (in my opinion) the overvaluing of the immediacy. why the need to show an image in real time? what benefit comes from that as opposed to waiting a day or two to post the raw file?

i can see how some outlets would benefit from immediacy. journalism being one. but in that industry there is zero need for high res 50 mp raw files. you cannot convince me that it is reasonably necessary to have both the immediacy AND the image quality of 50mp raw file. i think there is more reason in withholding the images release til the next day after you have had a chance to take advantage of opportunities afforded to you by having a 50mp raw file.

to me the benefits of having wifi for immediacy and 50mp raw files serve opposite ends of the need spectrum. to have both in one camera isn't going to pan out to be some great benefit that will actually produce real world advantages. the perception may be that it seems great...but i fail to see the necessity of needing both.

i used to shoot alot of corporate and collegiate events. there was a great deal of pressure for immediacy. myself and many of my associates resisted as we preferred to work the raw files over before releasing them. many of those jobs in my area have disappeared in favor of getting student volunteers to shoot with their phones and upload via instagram immediately. those clients just didnt care about the quality afforded by higher resolution raw capabilities.

i also shoot alot of weddings. i saw a brief attempt by some in that industry to present same day slide shows of the images shot. a notion i despised myself....but i saw it attempted. the impact was underwhelming...and wasted effort considering the lack of real world benefit.

i realize that in today's culture immediacy is highly valued. i am challenging the notion that it is necessary and i challenge the notion that it is better all the time. i think the most pervasive result of prioritizing immediacy is a sharp decline in quality. quality always benefits from extra time and consideration...always. this is what hi resolution Raw files afford us. so if you need immediacy, why burden yourself with a bunch of hi resolution files. if you need the quality from hi resolution files, why cut your legs out from under you by releasing an image immediately?

Everyone passes around their phone to show pictures... I'm not sure passing around a DSLR w/L lens is as likely to happen, plus the screen is sub-standard for snapshot size. O.K. so you can Wi-Fi your shots to your phone and share that way.

True. And that's why its a big let down that Canon does not give their new camera at least wifi and have the ability to auto upload to your phone/ipad/whatever or your fav photosite (and should do gps also...). This is not the "interconnectivity" Canon itself says it needs to do better.

the idea of a 50mp camera also being able to directly upload to an ipad/iphone seems absurd to me. do you realize how fast you would bog down your devices storage? even if you are shooting raw + the smallest jpg and only uploading the jpgs immediately...what is the point of having the 50mp raw file at that point?

beyond just the idea of "oh wouldn't be convenient if we could do such and such.." i don't see much consideration as to WHY we would even want to. "quick and easy" seems to be justified in and of itself regardless of the pointlessness of whatever it is we want to be quick and easy.

i really don't get it...we have the instagrams of the world for quick and easy, instant publication an all that jazz. trying to meld that with massive Raw files that in their intent are designed to allow for further consideration via post production seems like trying to mix oil with water.

my forehead is raw with red marks from slapping it so many times reading threads like these.

i wont challenge the points being offered up through the conference call but i will contest the notion that introducing new higher megapixel cameras will do anything but be a temporary salve in a declining market.

how will a mega resolution camera which essentially fulfills only small niche needs and likely come at a high end price thus being out of reach to a majority do anything to change the nature of today's market? canon might experience a relatively brief reprieve in declining sales but will end up in exactly the same place it stands today...which is a position it shares with all camera companies.

the market is simply oversaturated and expendable income is still becoming increasingly difficult to find for your average consumer. i expect that we are seeing a natural return to consumption models closer to what they might of been in the film days where investment in gear wasnt a 2-3 year turnover but rather several more years over that.

on a personal level, i simply have no interest upgrading every 2-3 years for anything. not my cameras, not my lenses, not my computer, or my software, or even my phone. i'm sick of all of it to be honest....i'm upgrade fatigued. i have a few spots that i still feel will significantly benefit from an upgrade but after i take care of those i intend to stretch that investment well past the 5+ year mark for cameras, phone and computer and 10+ years for lenses.

this will be the challenge camera makers will face. the past 15 years was an anomaly brought on by a radical change in how we did things. digital grew fast and we all raced to keep up. i welcome the maturation of digital and with it a much slower product cycle.

in no way what so ever will the introduction of these 2 cameras or anything else canon (or any other camera company) introduces the rest of the year will change the nature of what the market is now.

Texphoto has the basic gist down. you can take any photo you want, but because there are branding issues associated with these photos their use will be severely limited to pretty much personal use only. the company wont be able to use any photo with any recognizable branding in any marketing or advertising.

the liability for you comes in where if you shoot the photos and hand them over to this company then it becomes out of your control on how they are used. to protect yourself you need to have in your contract that the photos are for non commercial use only or you need to make sure your name doesn't show up in the copyright. don't tag those puppies in the metadata if you have even the slightest concern of culpability.

really the legal concern lies mostly with the company...not you. but always a good idea to make sure you are covered. don't get caught holding the potato when the music stops.